in Nebuchadnezzar’s eighteenth year, ¹  832 people from Jerusalem;

But if that nation I threatened stops doing wrong, ¹  I will cancel the destruction ²  I intended to do to it.

At that time the Babylonian forces ¹  had temporarily given up their siege against Jerusalem. ²  They had had it under siege, but withdrew when they heard that the army of Pharaoh had set out from Egypt. ³ )

When all the people that Ishmael had taken captive saw ¹  Johanan son of Kareah and all the army officers with him, they were glad.

The king of Babylon ordered them to be executed ¹  at Riblah in the territory of Hamath. So Judah was taken into exile away from its land.

All the nations will hear about all the good things which I will do to them. This city will bring me fame, honor, and praise before them for the joy that I bring it. The nations will tremble in awe at all the peace and prosperity that I will provide for it.’ ¹ 

All the officials sent Jehudi, who was the son of Nethaniah and the grandson of Cushi, to Baruch. They ordered him to tell Baruch, “Come here and bring with you ¹  the scroll you read in the hearing of the people.” ²  So Baruch son of Neriah went to them, carrying the scroll in his hand. ³ 

“Look! Enemies are gathering in the north like water rising in a river. ¹  They will be like an overflowing stream. They will overwhelm the whole country and everything in it like a flood. They will overwhelm the cities and their inhabitants. People will cry out in alarm. Everyone living in the country will cry out in pain.

The Lord asked, ¹  “How can I leave you unpunished, Jerusalem? ²  Your people ³  have rejected me and have worshiped gods that are not gods at all. ⁴  Even though I supplied all their needs, ⁵  they were like an unfaithful wife to me. ⁶  They went flocking ⁷  to the houses of prostitutes. ⁸ 

Hammered-out silver is brought from Tarshish ¹  and gold is brought from Uphaz ²  to cover those idols. ³  They are the handiwork of carpenters and goldsmiths. ⁴  They are clothed in blue and purple clothes. ⁵  They are all made by skillful workers. ⁶ 

Jeremiah had just barely finished saying all the Lord had commanded him to say to all the people. All at once some ¹  of the priests, the prophets, and the people grabbed him and shouted, “You deserve to die! ² 

Use it to send messages to the kings of Edom, Moab, Ammon, Tyre, ¹  and Sidon. ²  Send them through ³  the envoys who have come to Jerusalem ⁴  to King Zedekiah of Judah.

I will punish those people who have violated their covenant with me. I will make them like the calf they cut in two and passed between its pieces. ¹  I will do so because they did not keep the terms of the covenant they made in my presence. ² 

An Ethiopian, Ebed Melech, ¹  a court official in the royal palace, heard that Jeremiah had been put ²  in the cistern. While the king was holding court ³  at the Benjamin Gate,

What follows is a record of what happened to Jerusalem and Judah because of the Lord’s anger when he drove them out of his sight. ¹  Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon.

He decorates it with overlays of silver and gold. He uses hammer and nails to fasten it ¹  together so that it will not fall over.

The Lord told me to say ¹  to the royal court ²  of Judah, “Listen to what the Lord says,

The Lord told me, ¹  “Go down ²  to the palace of the king of Judah. Give him a message from me there. ³ 

When you seek me in prayer and worship, you will find me available to you. If you seek me with all your heart and soul, ¹ 

You should have reprimanded Jeremiah from Anathoth who is pretending to be a prophet among you! ¹